Worst Day Yesterday, Better Day Today
by cOokIe-MOnzTa
Summary: Risa Koizumi just isn't having the best day, and ends up going to bed with teary eyes. Will her friends be able to cheer her up the next day? Or will Atsushi Otani be forced to deal with Risa himself? R&R First L*C story!


Today has been the worst day of my life, and tonight was supposed to make it all better. Tonight, Otani & I were meant to have a somewhat romantic night to celebrate a special occasion… But for some reason, it wasn't going like it was supposed to… Why?

Because of this: for once, I wasn't the one who was 'late', Otani was.

I was getting worried, because he wasn't maybe 10 minutes late… he was a full hour late. _What's happened, Otani? Why aren't you here? I've been waiting for a long time!_

I had even resorted to pacing in circles, occasionally looking at my watch to check the time. Right now, I was sitting down on a bench that was directly across from our agreed meeting place. It was dark and cold, and he still hadn't come. My worry was increasing by each passing minute. _If he doesn't come within the next 5 minutes, I'm going to email him._ I thought.

I waited another five minutes, and he was still a no-show. _Seriously, Otani?! Why haven't you arrived yet?!_ I mentally raged. But then I stopped short, realising that he may be late on purpose… _What if… What if he's standing me up?_ I thought in despair. I checked my watch again, realising that my thoughts had dragged on for yet another five minutes. It was now 9:10PM… Otani was now an hour and ten minutes late.

I felt tears prick my eyes, as I brought out my phone. I flipped it open and searched through my contacts until I found _Otani, Atsushi_. I then selected the '_Send E-mail_' option and typed my message to him…

_To: Otani, Atsushi  
From: Koizumi, Risa  
Message:  
If you weren't going to come, you could've at least called me. Instead, you left me waiting over an hour for you and you still didn't show. Thanks a lot, Otani. Happy Anniversary._

I send the message, and got up from my seat. I put my phone away and went home, tears threatening to come out. I held them off though, somehow. I was going fine and was almost in the clear to my home until I saw the guys follow me.

"Hey sweetie, wanna have some fun?" one of them asked me. I just ignored them and kept walking. They were persistent on trying to get me to go with them, and they kept trying to get my attention, until one of the men grabbed my left wrist in an attempt to stop me. I whirled around and punched him. I got out my phone and called the cops. When they arrived however, the men were gone and I had to go to the station to fill out some 'Sexual Assault' papers. By the end of it, I was tired and frustrated and just wanted my bed. The officers were at least kind enough to drop me off at home, so at least my night wasn't entirely as bad as it could've been. By the time we got to the front of my house, it was 11:53PM. Almost an hour past curfew.

Once I got into my home, I went straight to my bedroom, ignoring my mother and father yelling at me for coming home so late, and locked the door behind me. I felt my tears start rushing down my cheeks, as I felt my heart tear itself apart. I took off the nicest clothes I had, that I'd worn for this 'special' night, and got dressed into my night-gown. I laid on my bed, tummy-down, and cried into my pillow. Today had all been sour since I got home from school. First, my parents and I argued over me 'not' cleaning up my room for weeks when all I did was accidentally not put out my washing for a few days; second, my brother and I had a falling out over whose turn it was to do chores; third, I found my window open and my most prized possession was destroyed by this stray cat that was leaping out of my open window when I opened my door; fourthly, I just got stood up by my boyfriend on our 'special' night; fifthly; I felt like my heart was being torn into pieces because I was stood up by the one person who I loved more than anything.

I heard my phone go off a few times, but I ignored it, and cried myself to sleep.

The next morning, I woke up at around 9:30AM. I was late for school, but I didn't care. I wasn't in the mood to go. Even so, I got dressed, brushing my hair but not bothering to do anything else with it and grabbed my bag and put my phone in it, went downstairs and made myself some toast. I ate it and left the house, locking the front door behind me, and got out my bike. I rode it slowly to school. I took my time in order to think about how to avoid Otani.

True, he is my boyfriend and I shouldn't be avoiding him, but he hurt me deeply last night by standing me up on our very first Anniversary night. I felt horrible in even thinking of avoiding him, but he has to understand that I am very upset with him and what he did last night… Or, well, what he didn't do…

When I got to school, I went to the bike bay and chained up my bike. I decided that I wouldn't talk or look at Otani today unless it was absolutely necessary. I checked the time, 10:15AM, and noted that it was recess right now. Huh. Anyway, I walked to class dutifully, and when I got there I was tackled by Nobu. We were the only ones in here, so I was relieved.

"Risa! We were so worried that you didn't show up this morning!" She wailed. I put my arms around her, patting her back awkwardly, and offered soothing words to her. When she pulled back, she gasped. "Risa, what happened?! You look a_wful_! Your eyes are all red and puffy, and even your hair isn't as vibrant as it was yesterday!" Nobu exclaimed in a horrid tone. I shrugged.

"I… was simply a bit down yesterday, that's all Nobu. I didn't feel like coming today either, but I knew I had to. You would've hounded me down no matter what, once school was out." I said, forcing a smile. Nobu just looked at me in despair. I walked passed her and went to my seat. Nobu just stood in front of my desk and slammed her hands onto it, just in time as Otani, Chiharu, Suzuki & Nakao walked into the room.

"Risa! You tell me _now_! Why were you so late to school! And don't try the '_I didn't feel like coming_' excuse you just tried to feed me! Something happened last night, and you're not telling me! Say it, Risa! Explain you actions, or so help me-" She screamed, but I cut her off.

"FINE! YOU WANNA KNOW SO BAD, HUH?! WELL, HERE IT IS! I HAD AN ARGUMENT WITH MY PARENTS, A FALLING OUT WITH MY BROTHER, GOT STOOD UP ON MY ANNIVERSARY NIGHT, I FEEL LIKE MY HEART IS BEING RIPPED TO SHREDS EVERY TWO SECONDS, I WAS SEXUALLY HARRASSED A FEW TIMES WHEN I WAS GOING HOME LAST NIGHT BY COMPLETE AND UTTER IDIOTS WHO DIDN'T GET THE TERM 'BACK OFF' UNTIL I CALLED THE COPS AND HAD TO DEAL WITH ALL THIS PAPER WORK, AND TO TOP IT ALL OFF MY MOST TREASURED POSSESION WAS DESTROYED BECAUSE OF A GOD DAMN STRAY CAT! THERE, THAT'S WHY I DIDN'T EVEN WANT TO WAKE UP THIS MORNING! ARE YOU HAPPY NOW?! BECAUSE I SURE AM NOT!" I screamed at her, losing it big time. I saw Nobu shrink back with a shocked look on her face. "You know what? All of a sudden, I feel sick. Tell the teacher that I've gone home, Nobuko." I said, letting a single tear escape. I abruptly stood up, grabbed my bag, and ran out of the classroom.

I feel a bit bad because I yelled at her, but Nobu seriously just wouldn't drop it. I knew that she knew I was pissed off at her, because I never call her by her full name unless I am seriously upset with her. She should've known not to push me, but she did anyway. I couldn't stay in school for another second.

I ran to the bike bay and unchained my bike. I was almost out of school when I heard Otani and the others.

"Risa!" I heard Chiharu and Nobu yell.

"Koizumi-san!" I heard Suzuki and Nakao call.

"Koizumi!" I heard Otani call out even louder than the others.

I flinched, knowing that they were concerned for me, but I kept going. Once out of the school grounds, I got on the bike and peddled away as fast as I could. I could still hear them calling me, as I rode away, but I just couldn't turn back… I had to be alone.

Once I got home again, and luckily no one was home, I checked the clock in the kitchen. 11:05AM. Wow, I peddled fast. Anyway, I went upstairs to my room and locked the door behind me. I stripped off my uniform, and had a shower. I washed myself thoroughly, and when I got out I dried myself quickly. I wrapped the towel around me and went to get some more clothes. I put on my undergarments first, and then put on a loose t-shirt with an Umibozu graphic on it, and some short-shorts. I then went to my school bag and got out my phone. I hadn't checked it yet, so I flipped it open and saw that I had 11 messages and 10 missed calls. I checked the missed calls first.

_2 missed calls from mother, 1 from father, 3 from Otani, 1 from Nobu, 1 from Chiharu, 1 from Suzuki & 1 from Nakao…_

I then checked the messages.

_2 from Mother, 1 from father, 4 from Otani, 1 from Nobu, 1 from Chiharu, 1 from Suzuki & 1 from Nakao…_

I didn't feel like returning the calls, nor reading the messages, so I just deleted them all. I almost put my phone down, when it went off again. It was a message from Nobu.

_To: Koizumi, Risa  
From: Ishihara, Nobuko  
Message:  
Risa! I am so sorry! Please call me!_

I just stared at it for a minute, before going to delete it, when my phone went off again. This time, it was Otani.

_To: Koizumi, Risa  
From: Otani, Atsushi  
Message:  
Koizumi, please don't be mad at me. I understand that you may be upset about last night - and you have every right to be, considering what had happened – but if you had read my previous email's, then you'd know why I couldn't make it! And I did try to contact you earlier than I did, but things just didn't work out that way. I'm sorry, ok? I really am. Call me._

I was tempted to call him, but I was still upset with him. Even if what he said was true, that he did try to tell me that he couldn't make it, I was still deeply hurt. It did give me some relief that he hadn't meant to ditch me, but it was supposed to be a 'special' night. I deleted both emails and turned my phone off, deciding that I'd call them later. After I have a sleep.

With that in mind, I went to my bed and fell asleep, crying again.

I woke up to banging on my front door, so I got up and rubbed the sleep out of my eyes and crept downstairs. I looked through the eye-hole, and saw that it was Otani and the others standing out there. Otani and Nobu were banging on the door, but they all had worry written all over their faces.

I looked at the clock on the wall in the living room, just across from the door-way, and saw that it was 3:58PM. Wow, I slept for a long time! I saw that my shirt was all crinkled, my shorts were had slightly rode up, and I had messy ponytail. I knew I had tear-stains on my face, but I didn't care. I took a deep breath, not even bothering to fix myself up, and opened up my door. I saw them all widen their eyes when they saw my appearance, but I just stared at them all blankly.

I didn't say a word, but left for the kitchen, the door open for them to come in. Once I got into the kitchen, I heard the door close and footsteps enter the living room. I ttok another deep breath, and cleaned up my face. After that, I got a tray and 6 cups and filled them up with water and placed them in a circle on the tray. I also made a few peanut butter sandwiches and cut them up into triangles and put them on a plate in the center of the tray. I then took the tray, with the refreshments and food, out into the living room and put it on the table.

I saw that everyone else had already sat down on the floor surrounding the table, so I just sat down next to it as well, but made sure I had distance between us. I then gave them a weak smile.

"Help yourself." I said, my voice a bit croaky since I haven't spoken for a bit and I've been crying a lot. I grabbed a cup myself and took a sip from it. I heard Nobu speak first.

"Risa, I am so sorry… I should have known not to pry, but please understand that I was really concerned… We all were." She said, begging me to understand. I nodded, knowing that that was true. I couldn't blame her for trying to understand why I was so upset, she just wanted to 'fix my problem' so that I'd be happy again. I gave her a reassuring smile.

"I know, I understand that… I just didn't want to talk about it this morning… Last night was probably the worst night of my life." I admitted, taking another sip of my drink. I saw the others slowly go for some of the refreshments. Otani didn't though, he just glared at the ground, looking like it was the ground's fault for what happened last night.

"Risa, I really am sorry…" Nobu apologised again. I sighed.

"It's fine, Nobu. I would have done the same thing if our roles were reversed. Really, I forgive you." I said, seeing her relax and Otani flinch and glare at the ground harder.

"Otani." I said, and saw him flinch again, but this time he didn't glare. He just looked up at me with apologetic eyes. "Otani… It's ok. Once you explain to me why you didn't show, I'll forgive you." Otani then looked at me sadly.

"You didn't read my texts, did you?" He said, as if already knowing. I nodded my head.

"I didn't. I didn't read any of the texts I received before I left school, I just deleted them. Nobu's and your texts that I received once I got home, I read. I didn't respond though, because I just wanted to sleep. And after… Letting it all out on my pillow, I did sleep. For longer than I thought, too, considering I woke up to you guys banging on my front door." I explained. "I had planned on calling you guys when I woke up, but here you are instead." I finished, grabbing a slice of sandwich and nibbling on it.

Everyone fell silent, and once I finished my sandwich, Otani got up and grabbed my hand. I looked at him and he pulled me up and he pulled my into my room, locking the door to prevent the others from coming in. After he did that, he pulled me into an embrace. My eyes widened, and a blush covered my cheeks.

"Koizumi… I'm sorry. I really did try to see you last night, I swear. I am so sorry for not showing." Otani said, his voice soft and sad. I just stayed there, unmoving as he continued. "I didn't show up, because my family wouldn't let me. My cousin had come into town and my mother didn't believe that I had plans already, so she made me stay in my room with him and 'catch up'. I would have emailed you or called you, but my mother took my phone off me and kept watch on it. Right when I was about to explode from frustration, my mother came into my room with a sad look on her face. She told me that she was sorry and gave me my phone back. I saw your message and my heart plummeted onto the floor. I ended up throwing insults at her, telling her that it was our special night and she just kept me from it and that she should be ashamed of herself, and she just accepted it because we both knew that she was at fault for it. I apologised to her for raising my voice and cursing, but she knew that I was angry at her so she just told me that I had the right to be. She let my cousin stay in the guest room, and I tried to call you and email you, explaining what happened, but… It seems that you didn't read them… I understand, though, because you have a right to be upset with me for being a no-show. I am really sorry." Otani explained.

I started crying silently, and Otani probably wouldn't have noticed, but one of my tears fell onto his shoulder. I felt him flinch as he looked up to me with a sad look on his face. This was really out of character for Otani, so that just made me feel guilty for thinking he stood me up even more. I fell to my knees and embraced him.

"I am so sorry, Otani… I thought that you'd just stood me up, when that wasn't the case at all… I am so sorry about that… I had a horrible day, and you not turning up had put me in an even worse mood… what happened after I left our meeting spot was just the icing on the cake for my 'worst day ever'… I am so sorry!" I apologised. My tears wouldn't stop flowing.

"…I can understand that, so there is no need to apologise, Koizumi. Please don't cry, you've cried enough already." He said softly, as he wrapped his arms around me. I eventually quieted down, and looked up to see him giving me a soft smile. "Hey, there we go… No more tears, ok?" He said. I gave him a shakey smile and nodded, sniffling and wiping my cheeks from any tear-streaks. Once I did that, he lifted my chin up to look at his face. He was leaning in, and whispered to me.

"I love you, Risa." He said, and then kissed me. I froze for a second, before melting into the kiss. That's the first time he's said that he loved me, and it's also the first time he's called me by my first name. I could die happy.

When we parted, I gave him my biggest grin. I saw him blush a bit.

"I love you, too… Atsushi." I said, and saw his little blush turn into a full-blown flustered look. I giggled and kissed him again, happy to have heard him say what he did. He didn't resist, but just blushed hard when we parted again. I just smiled happily, and he smiled back. I stood up, and he took my hand. He unlocked my door and we went downstairs to see that our friends had gone. Shrugging, he sat down to eat the rest of the sandwiches, whilst I took 4 empty cups into the kitchen and washed them. I entered the living room again and sat down next to Ota- I mean, Atsushi. I held his hand, he gripped mine in return, as we turned on the television and watched a few shows. By the time my family had all come home, I was passed out onto Atsushi's shoulder, and his head was resting on mine as he slept as well. The television was still going, on a music show with Umibozu singing a love song.

Yesterday may have been horrible for me, but today was better than any other, so far.


End file.
